The news came after interviews with last season's finalists Marlee Matlin and John Rich were shown in last week's episode. Comedian Lisa Lampanelli had already been fired after meeting Matlin and Rich.

In the boardroom, Aiken argued that he was a hard worker and flagged up the positive feedback he had received from his peers, admitting that he "failed to understand" why last year's winner John Rich considered him to be a leader, not a follower.

O'Day described herself as "the ultimate underdog", adding: "I treated every day like it was my last day", while Hall said that he was a "tireless worker" and promised he would spend the rest of his life trying to make Trump proud if he endorsed him.

He also said that in spite of the arguments he'd had with contestants, he was man enough to recognize his mistakes and apologize - notably for the language that he'd used.

Trump then explained that Matlin and Rich felt that O'Day was "transparent" and inexperienced when held up to the other two competitors.

After being fired, O'Day said: "Whoever called me transparent, f**k them! I think of many words I could be called and that's not true... I'm somebody that stands in your face and is so bright and shines so big that you're either intimidated, you're annoyed or you're in love."

Hall and Aiken have now been tasked with creating a variety show with the help of their former contestants in attempt to win the Celebrity Apprentice title and $250,000 for their charity, on top of any money earned from ticket sales to the event.

Aiken is playing for the National Inclusion Project, while Hall is playing for the Magic Johnson Foundation.